SAN DIEGO -- It was a simple question: If Dallas Cowboys tight end Jason Witten caught 15 passes for 138 yards against the Detroit Lions defense, what kind of numbers would a tight end like San Diego's Antontio Gates put up?

Gates chuckled and said, "Yeah, right. Well, we'll see. They know I'm from Detroit and I'm sure they are revved up in their locker room. They are excited, too. They're still in the hunt for the playoffs and we'll just have to wait until Sunday to see."

The one thing Gates is aware of, though, is that Witten wasn't a marked man in the Dallas game - that distinction belonged to receiver Terrell Owens. But in today's game between the 6-7 Lions and the 8-5 Chargers, Gates will be the main focus of Detroit's pass defense.

"You've got to cover all the guys on the field. Gates is their leading receiver so we've got to be more conscious of him and we will be," said Lions linebacker Boss Bailey.

Gates, who is 6-4 and 260 pounds and concentrated on his basketball career at Kent State, went undrafted in 2003, but signed with the Chargers and was an instant hit. He started 11 games as a rookie and while he only caught 24 passes, his talent was obvious. The more he learned the game, the more dangerous he became and he's gone to the Pro Bowl the last three years.

Gates, who went to high school in Detroit, currently leads the Chargers in receptions (67), receiving yards (890) and touchdowns (nine).

"I coached against him when he was a young player and when he really emerged on the scene. I was with the Raiders and didn't see anything he couldn't do then," said Chargers coach Norv Turner. "He's just a guy that keeps getting better and is going to keep getting better.

"The fact that he didn't play in college works in his favor. I think all that basketball background (gives him) such a great feel for leveraging and working off people and using his body. He has great quickness off the ball. He's too fast for the big guys to try to get up on him, and he's really too big for a lot of corners."

The Lions defenders know they'll have to do a better job on Gates than they did with Witten.

"All zones have holes in them and the Cowboys did a great job of sitting guys in those holes and taking what we gave them," said rookie safety Gerald Alexander.

"A lot of it comes down to making the tackle the first time and not allowing them the extra yards. Obviously, Antonio Gates presents another big challenge for us this week."

Lions head coach Rod Marinelli said that Witten gained almost 50 extra yards in last week's game by running after the catch. That's one area they'll have to tighten up against Gates.

While the addition of receiver Chris Chambers - in a trade with the Miami Dolphins - gives the Chargers more of an outside threat, the Lions will still be concentrating on Gates.

"Gates is the go-to guy and our concentrate will be on him regardless of where he's at on the field," Alexander said. "Anytime you focus on just one guy, another guy in the offense can hurt you. Gates does represent a big threat but we just have to play good coverage all around."

LIONS NOTES
On the rebound: The Chargers, who were 14-2 last season, overcame a slow 1-3 start to win seven of their last nine games and put themselves in first place of the AFC West division. Turner, who took over as head coach this year from Marty Schottenheimer, took a lot of heat early for San Diego's struggles.

"I'll tell you this: taking over a team in this league is a real challenge. I've been on both ends," Turner said. "My first job in Washington, I took over a team that the year before they were 4-12 and were last in the league in offense and I think second to last in the league in defense. When you're starting from scratch, that's a real challenge.

"Being here is real different. The one thing we've all learned is that every year in this league is a new year. This team, with a similar schedule to what we had this year, was 9-7 two years ago. There are no guarantees. I think those rough times will help us down the road. The one thing I will say though is that everybody talks about the challenges. Every job in this league is a challenge."